IT'S summertime, and the living is easy.

Or at least it will be for some. And if not now, then very soon. The European Union machine is shutting down for the summer holiday, as your correspondent discovered to his cost when trying to book podcast interviews.

The political movers and shakers of the International Maritime Organization will soon be on holiday too, if a recent document dump on the Net-Zero Framework is anything to go by.

Full analysis on this carbon tax policy trove is coming to these pages soon. It might not make for a political airport bestseller, but some points are worth noting in advance:

First, China — the world’s biggest user of fossil and clean energy — is still on board with the idea of something like the NZF, submitting several technical papers proposing tweaks, but seeming to keep quite a bit of climate ambition.

China has renewables to sell, so would benefit from such rules. But its approach is worth contrasting with that of the US, which is holding the line against a growing majority in favour of doing something for the climate.

The biggest objector to such action, Saudi Arabia, looks to be repeating its usual play: object to taxing fossil fuels, then argue the NZF can’t be adopted because objection to it exists.

On the other side are EU states, with Norway in particular coming out swinging against the industry-backed Liberia proposal for a tax-free carbon tax.

The US wants its LNG treated as greener, citing reasons that mention “manure lagoons”. Doubtless more on that later.

And Kuwait, for its part, has proposed a ‘flexibility mechanism’ (read: loophole) for vessels carrying essential goods. Toward the bottom of the list of such goods are “energy commodities and fuels essential for maintaining critical national infrastructure”. Would that be oil and gas?

The documents may leave casual readers cold. But the politics will only get hotter.

At least when everyone is back at work, that is.

Declan Bush
Senior reporter, Lloyd’s List

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